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SEINATE No. 336 



Commcnruealtl) of illassacljUBCtte. 



Sexate, April 28, 1905. 

The committee on Libraries, to Avhom was referred the 
petition of Prentiss Cummings for legislation relative to a 
iiemorial of the Chevalier de St. Sauveur, an officer in the 
French fleet, who was killed in an aflray in the streets of 
Boston in the year 1778, report the accompanying statement 
and resolve. 

[ The Resolve may he found on page 6".] 



y^-^ 



MAY 10 1905 
D.ofD. 



KEPOET. 



This report relates to an incident which occurred in the 
town of Boston in the State of Massachusetts Bay a little 
over a century and a quarter ago. 

Boston then contained less than 10,000 people, and the 
State not far from 300,000. The town had seen the last 
of the Royal Governors, and the evacuation of the British 
troops under Lord Howe had taken place two years previ- 
ously. It was at the tide-turning of the revolution, and the 
people were in the restless condition consequent upon the 
sudden chanofes of fortune which had befallen the merchants, 
and the inequalities of life resultant upon war and its dis- 
turbed relations. The general fortune of the war of the col- 
onies for independence was at its lowest ebb, when the dark 
night and terrible sufferings of Valley Forge were followed 
by the dawn of the French alliance, which was celebrated in 
camp on the 6th of May, 1778. 

The first fruit of this alliance was the arrival in the Bay 
of Delaware on the 8th of July, after a rough voyage of 
nearly ninety days from Toulon, of a French fleet of twelve 
ships of the line and three frigates, under Vice- Admiral 
Count D'Estaing, ready to co-operate with the States in the 
reduction of the British army and navy. This fleet also 
brought Gerard de Rayneval, the first French ambassador to 
the United States. D'Estaing sailed northward, interrupt- 
ino^ a few vessels bound for New York, and intendins: to sail 
up New York Bay and ofler battle to the British ; but his 
ships were so large that the pilots would not take them 
through the channel, and the fleet was sent by Washington 
to co-operate with General Sullivan in the attempt to capture 
the island of Rhode Island, and appeared oft' Newport on the 
29th of July, forcing the British through fear to destroy 
several of their armed ships and galleys. 



4 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

Maj. Gen. John Hancock was at the head of the Massa- 
chusetts troops which had been sent to co-operate with the 
other land forces under General Sullivan in this campaign. 
This expedition failed partly through misunderstandings 
between the land and naval forces, but more especially by 
reason of the danger to the French fleet by a hurricane. 
The admiral's flagship — the «'Languedoc" — lost its rud- 
der and masts, and the "Apollo," to which the flag w^as 
shifted, could not keep to sea, and D'Estaing sailed to Bos- 
ton for repairs and supplies. 

While the country had palpitated with joy at the alliance 
with France, this failure of the first eff*ort of the French 
fleet had a depressing eftect upon the people at large, and 
the popular welcome in Boston was not over-demonstrative. 
General Sullivan even censured D'Estaing, and insinuated 
that the French alliance was futile. It was at a moment 
when there was great possibility of endangering the alli- 
ance, — a fact which the public authorities fully recognized; 
and General Hancock hastened back from Rhode Island to 
extend the most generous hospitality to the officers of the 
French fleet, and, in co-operation with General Heath, who 
was the military commander in Massachusetts, to receive 
D'Estaing and his officers with every official as well as social 
courtesy. A superb entertainment was given the French 
officers in Faneuil Hall, and it is said that forty of them 
dined at General Hancock's table ever}^ day. The admiral 
acknowledged their courtesies by an entertainment on his 
flagship, — the " Languedoc." 

During the stay of the fleet in Boston a most unfortunate 
incident occurred, and one which, in the inflammable state 
of the populace, might have had far-reaching international 
results. Of this the authorities on both sides seem to have 
been fully aware. The matter was treated with great con- 
sideration and diplomacy, and in the way least calculated to 
arouse public interest. 

From the meagre and varying accounts it appears that 
upon the evening of the 8th of September an afi*ray occurred 
in the streets of Boston which resulted in the death of one 
of the officers of the fleet. It seems that a number of sea- 



1905.] SENATE — No. 336. 5 

men, whether British prisoners on parole, privateersmen or 
Americans, it is not quite clear, demanded bread of the 
French bakery employed for the supplying of Count D'Es- 
taing's fleet, and, being refused, fell upon and beat the 
bakers. Two of the count's officers, Monseigneur Count de 
St. Sauveur and M. de Pleville, had endeavored to quell the 
riot, and were both wounded, the Chevalier de St. Sau- 
veur receiving a mortal blow over the right eye, from which 
he died seven days after. The Chevalier de St. Sauveur, 
First Chamberlain of His Royal Highness Monseigneur 
Count d'Artois, brother of His Majesty the King of France, 
was a lieutenant of the eighty-gun ship '^Tonnant," the 
Count de Breugnon, chief of squadron, as aid, with rank of 
major, an officer immediately under the chief; he was also 
the brother-in-law of Breugnon. The oifenders were, it 
appears, never discovered, though a reward was ofi'ered for 
them by the government. Count D'Estaing was much 
grieved at the event, but treated it with great calmness and 
good sense. 

The matter does not appear as an item of news or subject 
of current comment in the newspapers of the day. It 
appears, however, from the records and official communica- 
tions hereto appended, that General Heath at once wrote a 
letter to the Council, commending the affair to its serious 
consideration, expressing his uneasiness and sense of the 
danger, and asking that every measure be taken to detect 
the perpetrators and insure protection in the future. At the 
same time General Heath wrote to Count D'Estaing, express- 
ing his regret, and giving assurance of his friendship for the 
count and his officers and men. To this letter Count 
D'Estaing replied in the most cordial terms expressing his 
confidence in the authorities. 

The Council, which was then the chief executive authority 
of the State, immediately appointed a committee to investi- 
gate the circumstances of the riot, and issued a proclamation 
promising a reward of three hundred dollars for the discovery 
of one or more of the rioters. 

The Chevalier de St. Sauveur died on the 15th of Septem- 
ber, and the next day the General Court passed a resolve 



6 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

appointing Col. Thomas Dawes a committee to provide a 
monumental stone to be placed in the burial ground where 
the remains should be deposited, with such inscription as 
the Count D'Estaing should order. This action was ac- 
knowledged m a letter of grateful appreciation by the count, 
and it appears from the log book of the *' Languedoc," the 
admiral's flagship, that an inscription was prepared as therein 
set forth, and copies ordered to be furnished to each ship in 
the fleet. The General Court voted to attend the funeral, 
but it appears that it was deemed best that no public display 
should be made, and in the night Avith simple and unostenta- 
tious rites the body was placed in a tomb under the " Chapel 
of the King," which is supposed to be the strangers' tomb 
underneath the porch of King's Chapel. 

Here the known history of the matter ends ; but there can 
be no reasonable doubt that it was intended at some time to 
erect a suitable monument, and that this intention was never 
carried out. The rapidly moving panorama of the closing 
years of the war, the formation of new State and federal 
governments, the French revolution which followed shortly 
after, were all calculated to divert attention on both sides of 
the water from a matter of this kind. Indeed, there was so 
much secrecy about the whole transaction that the deaths of 
comparatively few people sufiiced to leave it forgotten ; and 
between the years 1800 and 1900 was probably an interval 
of nearly a century during which no person was living who 
ever heard of it. Recent publications in France and in this 
country have called attention to the event, but this report is 
the first connected account of it ever published. 

In war and in peace Massachusetts keeps her promises. 
Here is an event filled with uncertain and distressing possi- 
bilities at the time, which, in the more comprehensive view 
of the present, had the matter not been disposed of to the 
entire satisfaction of the French oflficers, might have ended 
the French alliance, and changed materially the subsequent 
history if. not the results of the war of the revolution. 
Yorktown might never have been a lustrous, historic name. 
The State had failed in its primal duty to keep the public 
peace ; the death of a French officer of distinction had been 



1905.] SENATE — No. 336. 7 

the result. All the reparation possible at the moment was 
made. The omitted or forgotten detail should be supplied, 
and to this end the committee recommend the passage of the 
accompanying resolve. 

In conclusion, the committee cannot forbear to express 
their thanks to the State Librarian for his labors in examin- 
ing the original documents appended hereto, and preparing 
the foregoing report. 

Appended hereto are such documents of an official char- 
acter as have been discovered relating to the affair, and 
accounts of the incident from various sources. 

SILAS D. REED, 
PRENTISS CUMMINGS, 
WILLIAM A. BURNS, 

Of the Senate 
WILLIAM L. ADAMS, 
HENRY W. BROWN, 
MAURICE J. POWER, 
DAVID P. KEEFE, 
PORTUS B. HANCOCK, 
JAMES BARR, 
GEORGE H. STEVENS, 
JOHN J. BUTLER, 

Of the House. 



CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUYEUR. [Apr. 



CammontoeaitI) of illaeBactiiiBetla. 



In the Year One Thousand Nine Hundred and Five. 



RESOLVE 

Respecting a Memorial to Chevalier de St. Sauveur. 

1 Resolved^ That the president of the senate, the speaker 

2 of the house, and live citizens to be appointed by his 

3 excellency the governor be a committee to serve without 

4 pay during the recess, and report to the next general 

5 court such action as shall seem to them appropriate to 

6 carry out, at least in spirit, the promise implied in a 

7 resolution of the general court of Massachusetts Bay, 

8 passed September sixteenth, seventeen hundred and 

9 seventy-eight, respecting a monument and an inscription 

10 in memory of Chevalier de St. Sauveur, an officer in the 

11 fleet of Count D'Estaing, injured by persons unknown 

12 in an affray occurring in Boston, September eighth, 

13 seventeen hundred and seventy-eight, and who died here 

14 in consequence September fifteenth, seventeen hundred 

15 and seventy-eight. 



1905.] SENATE - No. 336. 



IN^OTE 



This incident has been revived mainly through the research of 
Capt. A. A. Folsom of Brookliue, his attention having been called 
to it by Col. Chaille Long, one of the founders of the French Society 
of the Sons of the American Revolution, and its delegate to the 
Congress of the S. A. R., which met in Washington in May, 1902. 
He was one of the commissioners appointed by the French Society 
of the S. A. R. to search tlie archives of the war, navy and for- 
eign affairs of the French government, to discover the names of 
the French officers, soldiers, sailors and marines who fought in the 
war for American independence, — a search which resulted in the 
publication by the French government of the valuable volume enti- 
tled " Les Combattants Franc^ais de la Guerre Americaine, 1778- 
1783," a copy of which was presented by the French government 
to the State Library of Massachusetts. In the records of the 
marine he found the log book of Count D'Estaing's flagship, the 
" Languedoc," and therein the clue to this incident. He inquired 
of Captain Folsom in which of the Boston cemeteries the St. 
Sauveur monument was erected ; and the latter, who is a good 
deal of an antiquary, knew there was no such monument, and 
had never heard of the St. Sauveur incident. He was some three 
years in gathering together the papers relating thereto, and it was 
very recently that the fact was ascertained that the Chevalier was 
buried in King's Chapel. Three of the important exhibits annexed 
hereto were found and added by the State Librarian in preparing 
this report. 



10 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 



APPENDIX 



No. 1. 

Letter op General Heath to the Council. 

[Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 200, pp. 72, 73, in Secretary's Office, State House. 1 
William Heath to the Council of Massachusetts. 

Head Quarters, Boston, Sept. 9th, 1778. 
Gent^ 

A Disturbauce happened the last night in the Streets, between 
a number of French officers and a number of Sailors or Inhabit- 
ants which is a Matter of serious Consideration, and I am confi- 
dent will have all due attention from your Honors. An officer of 
Rank and distinguished Family in France is supposed to be mor- 
tally wounded. I can scarcely Express my uneasiness on this 
occasion, as I am apprehensive without the utmost exertions, our 
great & good cause will be Injured Irreparably. The Expressions 
uttered by many are truly Surprising, and it may be that those 
who wish to make a Seism at this Time may be blowing the Coal. 
Upon the first call for the Troops the last night the Rioters In- 
stantly Dispersed, and If the Strength of the Garrison in Town 
would admit of Patrols they might Happily prevent Confusion and 
mischief in future. I am now Interrupted by the Coming in of 
Count D'Estaing's Secretary and the Major of the Fleet. Their 
Uneasiness is great. Every Step Possible must be taken to Con- 
vince them of our Sincerity and attachment, or the Consequences 
may be the most disagreeable. I informed the French Gentlemen 
that I was writing to the Hon"^ Council and was Confident they 
would take every measure in their Power to detect the Villains and 
to afford Protection. I rest Confident that your Wisdom will 
direct to the Most happy measures. 

I have the honor to be 

With the Greatest respect 

Your obt. Humble Serv* 

W. Heath. 



1905.] SENATE— No. 336. 11 



ISTo. 2. 

[Council Records, Vol. 22, pp. 443-445.] 

[The proclamation was also printed in the " Independent Chronicle," Sept. 10, 1778, with 
the signatures of Jeremiah Powell, president, and John Avery, deputy secretary.] 

Wednesday, September d^^, 1778, in Council. 

On motion Ordererl that Benjamin Austin & Daniel Hopkins 
Esq""' be a Committee to examine one Mr. Sage respecting the 
Riot committed the last Evening in this Town or to inquire of him 
what he knows respecting the affair & report. 

On motion ordered that Francis Dana & Daniel Hopkins Esq*"^ 
be a Committee to draft a Proclamation calling upon all Justices 
&c to apprehend all persons concerned in the Riot committed in 
this Town the last evening & report, who reported a Proclamation 
which was read & accepted and is as follows, viz. 

By the Council of the State of Massachusetts Bay. 
A Proclamation. 
Whereas this Council have received information of a high handed 
aiFray or riot happening in this town, on the hist evening, wherein 
several persons have been badly wounded, & one or more, it is feared 
mortally so ; And whereas the names of the persons concerned therein 
are at present unknown ; & it being of the highest importance that such 
outrages should be prevented, & offenders therein brought to condign 
punishment, this Council have tho't fit to issue this their Proclamation, 
hereby requiring all Justices of the Peace, all Sheriffs & their deputies, 
& all civil ojSicers in their several districts & departments within the 
said State respectively to use their utmost endeavors for discovering, 
apprehending and bringing to Justice all such persons offending as 
aforesaid. And we do also hereby promise a reward of Three hundred 
Dollars to be paid out of the Publick Treasury of this State to any per- 
son or persons who shall inform against or discover any one or more 
concerned in these riotous & unlawful proceedings so that he or they 
shall be convicted. Given under our hand, at the Council Chamber in 
Boston the ninth of September 1778. 

In the name & behalf of th^^ Council 

President. 
By their Honors' Command. 

Ordered that one hundred Copies of the above Proclamation be 
printed & posted up in the several parts of this Town. 

Whereas a high handed affray or riot happened in this town 
the last evening by persons unknown & the Chevalier de Pleville 
commandant La Frigatte L'Engageante is very desirous of going 
with the Sheriff & his officers to apprehend the Rioters, There- 



12 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

fore Ordered that William Greenleaf, Esq., Sheriff of the County 
of Suffolk be & hereby is directed to attend the said Chevalier de 
Plevflle with such aid & Assistance as he the said Sheriff shall 
think necessary — And to apprehend any person or persons sus- 
pected of being concerned in the aforesaid Riot & him or them 
forthwith to carry before some Justice of the Peace to be exam- 
ined & dealt with according to law. 



No. 3. 

Letter of General Heath to Count d'Estaing. 

["Heath Papers," Vol. 2, p. 268, Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 7th 

series, Vol. 4.] 

William Heath to Comte D'Estaing. 

Head Quarters, Sept. yth, 1778. 
Sir.— 

A very unhappy affair happened in this town the last night 
between a number of Frenchmen belonging to your squadron and 
a number of American sailors. Which first began I cannot tell. 
But some French gentlemen hearing of it ran to suppress the dis- 
turbance, when two of them were much wounded. As soon as 
notice was received at ray quarters of the disturbance the guards 
were ordered out to suppress it, but the rioters had dispersed 
before they reached the place. I want words to express the un- 
easiness which I feel on this occasion. I, this morning wrote to 
the Council. They view the matter with indignation and are 
determined if possible to find out the offenders and make proper 
examples of them. Some of the hands belonging to the Marl- 
borough privateer are suspected of being concerned in the riot. 
Orders are sent to the Castle to stop her until the matter is fully 
inquired into. You cannot Sir, feel more displeasure and concern 
at this conduct than I do, and I can only assure you that nothing 
shall be wanting on my part to bring offenders to justice and to 
prove with how much sincerity I prize and vallue the friendship of 
your Excellency and the oflflcers and men of your squadron. 

lam this moment honored with the receipt of your favor of this 
day. I cannot yet obtain the particulars of the burning of Bed- 
ford. I expect them this night or tomorrow, when I will imme- 
diately transmit them to your Excellency. 

1 have the honor to be, with the greatest respect. 

Your Excellency's most obd. serv*. 

W. Heath. 
His ExceP-"^ Count D'Estaing. 



1905. j SENATE — No. 336. 13 



No. 4. 
Reply of Count d'Estaing to Gteneral Heath. 

[" Heath Papers," Vol. 2, p. 269, Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 7th series. 
Vol. 4. The original is in French.] 

COMTE D'Estaing to William Heath. 

On the Roadstead of Boston, Sept. 10th, 1778. 
Dear Sir. 

I have the honor to thank your Excellency for the letter you had 
the kindness to write me yesterday & which has reached me this 
evening. It is with as much grief as confidence in your justice 
and in that of the Council that I have learned of the misfortune 
which happened night before last. The thing in itself has filled me 
with the deepest grief, which would have been increased had that 
been possible, on account of the '' personel " of the officers who 
were the victims. Our common enemies hesitate at nothing ; per- 
suaded that our union both national and private, render us invinci- 
ble, & that they must fail eventually there is nothing they will 
not try and the agents that they keep among you have only too 
many opportunities to execute their destructive orders. Imitators 
of those troops who burn defenceless villages, they secretly sow 
the seeds of discord & they know how to employ persons whom 
they may seduce or deceive. 

It is not against these last that I bring the complaints that I 
pray your Excellency to submit to the inspection of the Council. 
I should be inconsolable were a single inhabitant of the Metropolis 
of America to be punished for this fatal incident, if any have been 
misled by false insinuations which I do not believe. Their heart 
& their reason will now disavow their error, and I am persuaded 
that they will hate the more those who have led them astray. It 
is assuredly against the secret plotters of this event that the wis- 
dom of the Council will let fall all the weight of a just severity. 
I have counted so much upon the active foresight of the represent- 
atives of a free people that I have used no undue emphasis in the 
expression of my feelings. Some sailors many of whom are de- 
serters from the enemy like those said to be found on the Priva- 
teer Marlborough have proved no doubt suitable instruments to 
perform what has been done. The precautions which you have 
taken Sir, will perhaps bring to light a plot the real authors of 
which it seems to me are sufficiently well known. Public rumor 
already threatened them with a decision of the Council. Their 
perfidy will have merited it still more. 

I have charged M. le Chevalier de Borda, Major of the Squadron, 



14 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

to put at the head of our bakery during the time it remains on 
land, a man who knows the language with orders to prevent re- 
sistance of any kind on the part of bakers whose bread should be 
taken. The lives of men are infinitely more important than the 
preservation of our flour, necessary as that is to us. The chief 
baker, a native of the country, can tell if they are Americans or 
traitors to their country who act in this way. In the first case we 
should only peaceably claim our property from allies so dear to us, 
but in the second we should look to your government to find proper 
reparation upon which I rely, I pray you, Sir, that if the police 
that a time of war may necessitate decides you to place a guard 
over the bakery, to give to this guard the same orders that our 
bakers have already had and to forbid especially that your sol- 
diers ever fire not even in repelling force by force but content 
themselves with peaceably protecting that which belongs to us and 
recognizing the evildoers. M. de Borda has already doubtless 
presented the request on my part. 

The uncertainty you are in regarding the movements of the 
English and of which, you have the goodness to inform me, pre- 
vents me from leaving the Roadstead and will deprive me to- 
morrow of the great pleasure of profiting by the kindness of his 
Excellency Monsieur the Honorable General Hancock. Will you 
kindly inform him of all this letter contains. Monsieur de Grand 
Clos can translate it. 

I have the Honor to be, with Respect, Monsieur, for your 
Excellency, Your very humble and obedient Servant, 

ESTAING. 

To His Excellency Monsieur the General Heath, Major General of U. S. 
troops of America and Commander in Chief at Boston. 



:n"o. 5. 

Extract from a Letter from General Heath to General 
Washington, found in the "Washington Collection" 
AT the Department of State at Washington. 

[Printed also in " Heath Papers," Vol. 2, p. 271.] 

The night before last an unhappy affray happened here between 
a number of American and French Sailors. Some French officers 
who were near the place attempting to quell the disturbance were 
much wounded one I fear mortally. The guards instantly turn'd 
out to suppress the riot but the Rioters dispersed before the guard 
arrived at the place. 

Every step has been taken to discover and apprehend the per- 



1905.] SENATE — No. 336. 15 

sons concerned and to satisfy the French Gentlemen who appeared 
much alarmed on the occasion and in particuhir that their Officers 
should be insulted & wounded. 

The conduct of the Council has been very spirited. The guards 
patroled the streets the last night to prevent further disturbance. 
The Count D'Estaing has assured me this day he is fully satisfyed 
the Inhabitants had no hand in the affra-y. 



No. (3. 

[Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 219, p. 217.] 

State of Massachusetts Bat. 
In the House of Repkesentatives, Sept. 16, 1778. 

Whereas on the Evening of the 8th Instant in an Affray which 
happened in the Town of Boston, by high insults offer'd to some 
French Bakers by certain riotous Persons unknown the Chevalier 
de Saint Sauveur, in endeavoring to make Peace, received a wound 
in the Head which ended his Life on the loth, And as this Court 
hold in the highest detestation the Perpetrators and Abettors of 
this horrid Deed, and out of respect to the Memory of the deceased 

Resolved, That this Government will provide a monumental 
Stone to be placed in the burial Ground where his Remains shall 
be deposited, with such inscription as his Excellency the Count 
D'Estaing shall order. 

And this Court will attend in Procession the Corps of the de- 
ceased to the Place of Interment. 

Resolved, That Coll. Thomas Dawes be a Committee to see the 
Monumental Stone erected accordingly. Sent up for Concurrence. 

John Pickering, Spk'' 

In council, Sept. 16, 1778. 

Read & Concurred. 

John Avery, Dp. Secy. 

Consented to 

Jer. Powell. Dan'l Hopkins. 

B. Greenleaf. a. Fuller. 
Jedidiah Preble. N. Gushing. 

T. Gushing. Sam^l Niles. 

Jabez Fisher. Joseph Simpson. 

B. White. Jno. Pitts. 

H. Gardner. Josiah Stone. 
Moses Gill, 



16 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

No. 7. 

Letter from Count d'Estaing to the Council. 

[Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 200, p. 103.] 

Boston Road, 19th Septr. 1778. 
Sir. 

Permit me to entreat your Honour to be the Instrument of ex- 
pressg. the Gratitude of all the french who are with me, & to make 
their respectful Homage acceptable to the Council of State of 
Boston is a favour which I have the honour to ask in their Name. 
The resolution which had for its Object the misfortune that hap- 
pened to the Chevalier de St. Sauveur, adds nothing to the entire 
persuasion we all lay under of the Sentiments of the Council of 
State, our attachment, & Circumstances announced them to us, & 
their Goodness hath Confirmed us in the same ; the striking proof 
they give of their Indignation, of their Justice & of the Interest 
they take in the fate of an officer distinguished by his zeal & by 
his personal qualities is just & right in order to augment the Devo- 
tion & Inclination for the common Cause, which is so deeply en- 
graven in our hearts : What the Council of State hath deigned to 
resolve & their Sentiments thereupon are the funeral flowers most 
acceptable to the memory of a Gentleman who having the honor 
to hold a considerable post in the Royal family, was sure to acquire 
new rights from his Sovereign's Bounty, in Sacrifising his Life for 
America, & who falls a Victim to the desire he had of preserving 
the Lives of Others, expressed in his last words, & in his last 
moments was intent upon What he presumed the most suitable 
means for a general union which nothing shall weaken & that his 
misfortune & his blood which has been shed may only serve as he 
most earnestly wished it might to cement it still more. 

I have the honor to be with profound respect Sirs, Your Honors 
most humble & most obedt. Servt. 

ESTAING. 

In Council Sept. 21, 1778. 

Reed. & Sent Down. 

JoNA. Avery, Dep. Secy. 



1905.1 SENATE — No. 336. 17 



No. 8. 

Extract from Letter of General Washington to General 
Heath, Sept. 22, 1778. 

[ " Heath Papers," Vol. 1, p. 95, Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 5th series, 

Vol. 4.] 

I ani pleased to hear by a letter from General Greene, of the 
16th, that the affray mentioned in yours of the 10th has terminated 
in such a manner as to convince the French gentlemen that no 
public harm or insult was intended by the people of the town of 
Boston. All possible means should now be taken to cultivate 
harmony between the people and seamen, who will not be so easily 
reconciled as their officers, not having so much sense to direct 
them. 



No, 9. 

Extract from Gordon's "History of the War of Independ- 
ence." 

[3d American edition. Vol. 2, pp. 394-396, in a letter dated Roxburr, Nov. 12, 177S.] 

In the evening of the 8th, there was a violent affray at Boston 
between certain unknown persons and a number of French. It is 
said, though not proved, to have been begun by seamen captured 
in British vessels, and some of Burgoyne's army, who had enlisted 
in privateers just ready to sail. A body of these fellows, we have 
been told, demanded bread of the French bakers employed for the 
supplying of the count d'Estaing's fleet; and being refused, fell 
upon and beat them in a most outrageous manner. Two of the 
count's officers, attempting to compose the fray, were wounded, 
the chevalier de Saint Sauveur so badly that he died on the 15th ; 
and the next day the Massachusetts house of assembly resolved 
to erect a monumental stone to his memory. None of the offend- 
ing persons having been discovered, notwithstanding the reward 
that was offered, it may be feared that Americans were concerned 
in the riot ; while political prudence charged it upon others, that 
less umbrage might be taken at the event. The count was much 
grieved ac what had happened ; but had too much calmness and 
good sense to charge it upon the body of the inhabitants, who 
were no less concerned at it than himself ; so that it created no 
dissentions between them. On the 22d, the general court received 
the compliments of the count and his officers ; all of whom were 
invited to dine, three days after, at a public dinner. The fleet 
had been so far repaired, and so well secured by formidable works 



18 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

on George's-IslaDd, in which the count had mounted near a hun- 
dred heavy cannon, that they could with the utmost propriety be 
absent upon the occasion. For the greater security, the general 
court, under an apprehension that the British fleet and army might 
move to the northward, with a view of destroying the count's 
fleet, and repossessing themselves of Boston, had resolved on the 
19th to raise a third of the militia. Three days before this re- 
solve, admiral Byron arrived at New-York from Halifax. His 
squadron had suffered so in their voyage from Britain, that it was 
a full month before he could sail again, in order to observe 
d'Estaing's motions. The count lay at ease and in safety ; and 
on the 26th of October, entertained a large company of gentlemen 
and ladies whom he had invited to dine with him on board the 
Languedoc. The entertainment was highly elegant. A full 
length picture of gen. Washington, presented to the count by Mr. 
Hancock, was placed in the center of the upper side of the room, 
and the frame of it was covered with laurels. The count having 
made this public return for the personal civilities he had received 
from numbers secured himself from all liableness to detention by 
points of honor ; from a threatened detention of another nature, 
he had been happily relieved in season. It was generally ex- 
pected from the scarceness of provisions of all sorts at Boston 
and the neighborhood, that he would have encountered great diffi- 
culties, if not actual distress. The impracticability of victualling 
his fleet at that port was dreaded, even the subsisting of it was 
doubted. — But he was freed from these apprehensions by a singu- 
lar fortune. The New-Eagland cruisers took such, a number of 
provision vessels on their way from Europe to New-York, as not 
only supplied the wants of the French, but furnished an overplus 
sufficient to reduce the rates of the markets at Boston. This sea- 
sonable supply occasioned great triumph among the inhabitants. 
The count being in hope of sailing within a few days, published a 
declaration to be spread among the French Canadians, and ad- 
dressed them in the name of their ancient master the French 
King. — The design of it was to recall their affection to the an- 
cient government and to revive all the national attachments of 
that people, thereby to prepare them for an invasion either from 
France or America, and to raise their expectations of no distant 
change of masters. Admiral Byron having repaired his fleet, ap- 
peared off Boston bay ; but had not cruised there long before he 
was overtaken by a violent storm, in which the ships again suf- 
fered so much, that they were glad to get into shelter at Rhode- 
Island. The Somerset of 64 guns not being able to clear Cape 
Cod, run ashore and fell into the hands of the Bay-men who saved 



1905.] SENATE — No. 336. 19 

her guns and many valuable articles. When the storm ended, the 
wind settled in the north-west, and blew fair for carrying the 
French fleet to the West-Indies. Count d'Estaing seized the op- 
portunity, and sailed from Boston [Nov. 3,] with his ships thor- 
oughly repaired, clean, and well victualled, and with his forces in 
full health and vigor. 

The behaviour of the French officers and sailors, the whole time 
that their fleet lay in port, was remarkably good, far beyond any 
thing of the kind ever before, when several men of war were 
present. The count made a point of always lying on board at 
night. The officers conducted with the greatest regularity and 
decorum ; but noticed a certain coolness in the gentlemen and 
ladies toward them, which was imputed to the want of so cordial 
an affection for France as what they had once entertained for 
Great-Britain, and had not wholly laid aside ; but it was greatly 
owing to the successless expedition against Rliode-Island, and to 
what had been related concerning them respecting that affair. 
The common sailors were peaceably inclined ; and engaged in no 
quarrels excepting what has been related, and one at night of 
October the 5th, in no wise material ; and in neither of these do 
they appear to have been the aggressors. — They neither abused 
nor injured the town's-people ; nor made themselves a nuisance by 
their excesses and disorderly conduct. 



^o. 10. 

Extract from the Log Book of the "Languedoc." 
In the Log Book of the "• Languedoc," 94 guns, 1,160 men, flag- 
ship of Admiral Count d'Estaing, there is an account of a night 
attack by Tories in the streets of Boston. Lieutenant St. Sauveur 
and Pl^ville, informed, hurried to the rescue ; waylaid and beaten 
by clubs, left for dead ; M. St. Sauveur, grievously wounded, died 
of his injuries Sept. 15, 1778. 

The following inscription, placed upon his monument by order 
of the Boston Council, appears in the log: "This monument has 
been created in consequence of a resolution of the State of Massa- 
chusetts Bay, the 16th Sept., 1778, in memory of Chevalier de St. 
Sauveur, First Chamberlain of His Royal Highness, Monseigneur 
Count d'Artois, brother of His Majesty, the King of France. Tliis 
officer. Aide Major of the French fleet, and Lieutenant de Vaisseau 
of the ' Tonnant,' after having had the glory of risking his life for 
the United States, was in the performance of his duty when he 
became a victim of a tumult caused by the evil minded. He died 



20 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

with the same devotion for America. The ties of duty and sym- 
pathy which bind his compatriots to the City of Boston have thus 
been drawn tighter. May all the efforts which may be attempted 
to separate France and America end thus. Such is the prayer 
which in the centuries to come all Frenchmen and Americans will 
offer to the Almighty, whose eyes shall fall upon this mausoleum 
of a young man taken from his friends, who may be consoled at 
his loss in seeing such funeral flowers spread upon his tomb. This 
inscription proposed in Council by the Count d' Estaing, command- 
ing the first squadron sent by the king of France to his allies, has 
been engraved on this stone by order of Colonel Thomas Dawes, 
nominated for this object by the Government." — Friday, Sept. 28, 
1778. The Admiral directed that all his fleet captains have copies 
made of the inscription on the tomb of M. de St. Sauveur for the 
information of the ships' crews. 



No. 11. 
Extract from the "Gentleman's Magazine." 

[London, VoL 48, p. 546.] 

On the 23d of September a desperate riot happened at Boston, 
occasioned as it is said, by the bakers denying bread to the 
captured seaman in British vessels, while they were employed in 
amply supplying those in the fleet of Count d'Estaing. Several 
were killed in this affray, and two French officers of high rank 
were much hurt in endeavoring to quell it. The magistrates have 
since published a proclamation, offering a reward of three hundred 
dollars for the discovery of any of the ringleaders. 



ISTo. 12. 

Extract from the " History of the Marquis de Lafayette." 

[Hartford, Conn., 1851, p. 71.] 

The conduct of the French officers, and even common sailors at 
Boston was truly exemplary. But this extreme circumspection 
did not prevent the occurrence of a violent affray between some 
Americans and French, which resulted in the death of the Chev- 
alier de Saint Sauveur. The selectmen of the town, to allay the 
resentment of the French, showed themselves very solicitous to 
punish the offenders, and declared that the tumult was fomented 
by English sailors who had been made prisoners, and deserters 



1905.] SENATE — No. 336. 21 

from the army of Burgoyne. Tranquillity was restored ; the 
Count D'Estaing made no further inquiry into the affair; no 
offender was discovered; and the government of Massachusetts 
decreed a monument to be erected to Saint Sauveur. 



No. 13. 

Extract from Letter of the Comte de Breugnon, Oct. 10, 

1778. 

[Stevens's Facsimiles of Manuscripts in European Arcliives relating to America, 

Vol.23, No. 1974.] 

A great misfortune has happened to me. Monseigneur Count 
de St. Sauveur, my brother-in-law, being in Boston by order of 
Count d'Estaing, three leagues from tlie vessel " le Tonnant," 
working at the provisioning of the squadron, a number of soldier- 
bakers quarrelled there with the Americans. Count de St. Sau- 
veur and M. de Pl^ville went to them to put an end to the riot, 
and when they were both coming away, fifty rascals flung them- 
selves upon them ; my brother-in-law received a mortal blow with 
a stick over the right eye, of which he died seven days after. All 
the Commanders and the Governors of the country were distressed 
at it, and have added to what Count d'Estaing did me the honour 
to say to me all that it was possible to do to express real regret at 
such a fatal occurrence amongst them. 

I have the honor to be with profound respect, 
Monseigneur, 

Your very humble 

and very obedient servant 
Breugnon. 



^o. 14. 

Extract from "French Sailors and Soldiers in Amkrica 
DURING the War of Independence of the United States, 
1778-1783," BY VicoMTE de Noailles, Paris, 1903, p. 46. 

[Translation.] 

On the 8th of September a bloody fight occurred in the port of 
Boston, in which M. de Pleville as well as the Chevalier de Saint- 
Sauveur were wounded. "Yesterday evening at ten o'clock" 
writes the Chavalier de Borda to the Comte d'Estaing on the 9th 
of September, "a quarrel occurred between the Americans and 
some of our sailors and soldiers which resulted most unfortunately. 
MM. de Pleville and de Saint-Sauveur who had gone there to quiet 



22 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 

the disturbance were wounded." The latter was very seriously 
wounded. These two oflScers had rushed bravely to the assistance 
of their countrymen whom they believed to be in danger. 

Investigations were instituted but without result. 

In brief, Saint-Sauveur died on the 15th of September. The 
American authorities showed themselves very uneasy as to the con- 
sequences of his death. General Hancock and the Town Council 
proposed to give him a grand funeral, but this offer was declined, 
and the interment took place without pomp in the vault of a 
chapel that Dr. Cooper had procured. "The generals and prin- 
cipal personages of the town are very much displeased, but it is to 
be hoped that they will be pacified," says a witness. Hear the 
account of this doleful ceremony exactly in accordance with the 
last wishes of the deceased : *' Eight sailors of the ' Tonnant ' bore 
the coffin on their shoulders," says M. de G-randclos (secretary of 
the Royal Squadron). "I preceded them, with the sexton and 
grave-digger; the Recollet (a Franciscan monk), MM. de Borda, 
de Puysegur and Pierveres followed ; the body servant of the 
deceased, and perhaps two or three Frenchmen, closed the proces- 
sion ; we started in this order at ten o'clock, and arrived at the 
church, called the Chapel of the King, found the basement of 
the church illuminated with many candles, without ostentation. 
The vault was opened and the Reverend Father deposited the 
remains without ceremony ; the door of the vault having been 
closed and padlocked, we returned to sign a certificate of inter- 
ment which I had already drawn up. In fine, what we had been 
charged to do could not have been done with more precision and 
exactness." Could one read anything more cold and lugubrious ! 
What a sad end for a young officer ! The 26 and 27 September 
the French sailors were again subjected to the ill treatment of the 
Americans in Boston. By these rather prolonged details we have 
wished to give a clear idea of the state of feeling which existed 
after this affair which at that time took such astonishing pro- 
portions. 

ISTo. 15. 

Extract from " La Marine Militaire> de la France sous le 

Regne de Louis XVI, par G. Lacour-Gayet, 1905," 

pp. 171-173. 

Immediately on his arrival in Boston, d'Estaing manifested an 

astonishing activity. Fearing with good reason that he might be 

pursued, he wished at least to avoid surprise. One of the good 

anchorages in the roadstead of Boston is Quincy Bay commanded 



1905.] SENATE — No. 336. 28 

by the island and bay of Nantasket, situated farther to the east. 
Three vessels only, the " Languedoc," the '^ Marseillais " and the 
" Protecteur," which were in urgent need of repairs, anchored at 
Quincy Bay ; the nine others remained in Nantasket waters. The 
frigates, retired into the harbor itself, were almost entirely dis- 
armed ; their crews and equipments were for hours employed in 
the fortification of a vast intrenched camp. Three positions were 
occupied, commanding Quincy Bay : the very narrow peninsula 
of Hull which forms the western point of Nantasket; George's 
Island, which is occupied today by a strong fort, and Lovell's 
Island ; behind this. Gallop's Island was also put into a state of 
defense. Bougainville, Broves, Chabert, d'Albert de Rions occu- 
pied these various positions ; bristling with mortars they formed 
a very solid whole. Supported by these batteries, the nine vessels 
of the squadron who had suffered the least were arranged in a 
semi-circle in the roadstead of Nantasket; from a distance, says 
d'Estaing, they presented " the most imposing order." Mounted 
upon the '' Cesar," the admiral was ready to repulse any attack. On 
the 31st of August, only three days after their arrival in Boston, 
when these defensive preparations were being carried forward 
with a feverish activity, the English squadron was sighted in the 
distance. 

To the Americans, who were disposed to take but little account 
of the dangers encountered by the ships of d'Estaing, this was 
nothing but a myth. But the next day, September 1, it was seen 
to be really Howe's fleet, now from sixteen to eighteen sails strong ; 
it had been reinforced by a part of Byron's squadron. The prep- 
arations for receiving them were not completed, but everyone was 
at his post. The English showed themselves in the offing, with- 
out approaching even within cannon-range. They considered the 
position too well guarded to be attacked, too dangerous even to be 
blocked ; one of their vessels, the Saint-Alban lost her anchors 
upon Cape Cod, to the south-east of Nantasket. They did nothing 
but show themselves and disappear. After their departure, the 
work on the fortifications was continued ; the fleet was very soon 
protected from any surprise, and it was able at last to enjoy a few 
days in security. 

This stay in Boston, however, which lasted a little over two 
months, was far from being a season of idleness. To procure 
masts and provisions in a country almost without resources ; to 
treat with the government of Boston which was ill-disposed 
toward the Frenchmen on account of the pretended abandonment 
of Rhode Island : such a difficult task demanded no less than pro- 
digious activity on the part of the Chevalier de Borda, the unlim- 



24 CHEVALIER DE ST. SAUVEUR. [Apr. 1905. 

ited devotion of all the officers and the greatest diplomacy of 
d'Estaing. It is difficult to give an idea of the tremendous work 
accomplished in a few weeks, of putting into good order this 
squadron which had left Toulon imperfectly prepared, and which 
had never been revictualled since its departure. 

A tragic incident came near making the situation of the French 
very difficult. A bakery had been established on land to provide 
fresh bread to the troops. Excited by some English sympathizers 
the Boston populace attempted to plunder it. A lieutenant of the 
ship " Tonnant," the Chevalier de Saint-Sauveur, interposed to 
quiet the tumult and for this intervention he paid with his life. 
Another officer, Pleville Le Peliey, was severely wounded. The 
State of Massachusetts hastened to express to the admiral its sin- 
cere regrets; by a decision of September 16, it ordered a monu- 
ment to be erected to the unfortunate officer. In order not to 
provoke any counter-manifestation, d'Estaing had caused the 
body of Saint-Sauveur to be interred at night; the Chevalier de 
Borda alone had represented the squadron at this sad ceremony. 

Wishing to banish'these unhappy recollections, the government 
of Boston gave a grand banquet to the admiral and officers of the 
squadron on the 25th of September. The reception was very cor- 
dial ; there were toasts to America, to France, and to innumerable 
other persons and things. The first toast of the Franco-American 
alliance was perhaps hardly in conformity with the protocol ; but 
its very exuberance was symbolic of the cordiality existing be- 
tween the sailors of Louis XVI. and the militia of Washington. 



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